Plymouth pops Middleboro in Legion tussle

Tuesday

After a disappointing start to the season, the Plymouth Post 40 American Legion baseball team needed a confidence booster heading into a hectic final two weeks of the schedule.

Plymouth got it with a 7-4 win over Zone 10 foe Middleboro Post 64 Monday night in Middleboro, allowing Post 40 to get back on track towards making a run to attempt to qualify for the Zone 10 playoffs.

Plymouth Post 40 head coach Paul Coffin’s team hasn’t quite lived up to its potential yet considering that he has several players from the Plymouth North high school baseball team that made it to the Div. 2 state championship game.

“When we’re here, and we’re focusing on the play, we are a good team. We just haven’t showed it yet,” Coffin said of his 3-5 squad. “We’re way behind because of the weather, and we’re way behind because of Plymouth North doing well in the tournament, so we missed that first week of games.

“I have a lot of tired people from (Plymouth) North, physically and mentally, and (Plymouth) South sat around and didn’t play for five weeks so we’re trying to get back on track and get people into it and get people playing the way they can play again.”

Post 40 flashed its potential in the first inning, taking 1-0 lead on a long sacrifice fly by Joe Flynn to score leadoff hitter Jameson Wood from second base.

Middleboro Post 64’s Tyler Horan, a baseball and football standout for BC High who will attend Virginia Tech this fall, would’ve hit what would have been a game-tying home run in the bottom of the first, but with no outfield fence at Middleboro High School’s field, Plymouth’s alert defense forced him to settle for a double and Horan was left stranded.

Middleboro did tie the game in the bottom of the second inning when Brent Lydow doubled to center to score Mike van Ryper.

Middleboro then went ahead, 2-1, when Lydow attempted to steal third base and Plymouth third baseman Pat Lane misjudged the pickoff throw, allowing Lydow to score the go-ahead run.

Plymouth right fielder Tom MacInness tied it again in the third inning with a double before another double by shortstop Joey Flynn scored MacInness to regain the lead for Plymouth.

Flynn stole third and scored on a base hit by catcher Matt Walsh, with Walsh scoring on a sacrifice fly by Sean Kimball to give Plymouth a 5-2 lead.

Middleboro made it 5-3 on back-to-back singles by Horan and Jameson Wood and a run-scoring flyout by Nick Bean.

Zack Maddigan then entered the game in relief of Middleboro starting pitcher John Wylie in the fourth inning and effectively shut down Plymouth Post 40’s offense until he was relieved with one out in the seventh.

Ryan Coughlin, who took the ball for Maddigan, gave up a two-run double to the second batter he faced, giving Plymouth Post 40 a 7-3 lead.

Middleboro closed out the scoring in the bottom of the seventh when Horan scored from first on a single by Nick Bean as Post 64 dropped to 4-8.

“We knew we were against a solid team,” Middleboro Post 64 head coach Ron Holmgren said. “Everybody chipped in here and there. I’m proud that the kids were really into the game and they played hard, that’s all you can ask for as a coach.

“(At 4-8) we’re close to being out of it, but we’re not giving up,” Holmgren said. “If we can go on a little streak, we’d be right in the thick of things.”

Holmgren was pleased with the relief performance of Maddigan, who had four strikeouts while allowing only one hit and no walks in three innings of relief.

“Maddigan had a real good relief performance,” Holmgren said. “He just started. He doesn’t play baseball, he’s a track star for Middleboro, a very good long distance runner.

“He played for me a long time ago, he called up wanting to play and I said we’ll work you in, you got to throw some bullpens until your arm gets ready. Hopefully, he’ll work into the rotation.”

Due to the many games Plymouth Post 40 missed early in the season because of Plymouth North’s MIAA tournament run and a rainy June, Post 40 will play its final 12 games over the course of the next two weeks before the season ends July 12.

“We’re playing every single day with the exception of the Fourth of July,” Coffin said. “So our pitching is going to be tested.

“Our pitching rotation is lined up the way we want it, we’ve just got to hit and play (defense).”

Horan finished the game 3-for-4 with a double and two base hits in a losing effort for Middleboro.

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